Augmented reality duty free shopping comes to Schönefeld Airport

Augmented reality duty free shopping comes to Schönefeld Airport

Visiting the duty free shops at Berlin's Schönefeld Airport just got a little more exciting following the introductiion of an Augmented Reality App offering users the chance to win up to 20% off their purchases!

Heinemann Duty Free says that the App, introduced in the run up to Christmas, merges online and offline shopping and provides users with the opportunity to save money in the form of a game.

"We want to offer passengers in the capital city a unique shopping experience on a completely new level," says Steffen Jopp, managing director of Heinemann Duty Free in Berlin.

"The boundaries between online and offline shopping are becoming increasingly blurred and at the very latest, since the hype about 'Pokémon Go', the mixing of virtual and real world is a term understood by most people.

“It is our ambition that we are creating an insight into the virtual world for our international customers in game form. With the App, we have our finger on the pulse and are demolishing the bridges between both worlds."

Heinemann staff will encourage instore customers to join in the game, which basically involves using an iPad to burst some virtual reality balloons to win an immediate discount.

Indeed, the more balloons they burst, the higher the value of the discount coupon received.

Gamers can win a discount of up to 20% on their purchase by taking part.

And, according to Heinemann, "the lucky devil" who bursts the 1000th balloon will be particularly happy as they will win an extra €100 gift card.

To make things a little more exciting for others, a live image from the iPad will be transferred via AppleTV on to the promotion screens in the shop, so that each customer in the shop can join in the fun and perhaps even develop a taste for it.